I "binged" Pokémon Origins - easy considering it is only 4-episodes long.

Well, turns out it is one elaborate ad for Pokemon X and Y😅 They were even released around the same time: October 2013.

Having said that, barring the inclusion of the Mega Evolution mechanic in this anime, I'd say this is the most faithful adaptation of the games I've seen. Pretty much everything is lore-accurate. Heck, they even included some references!

(Pity that they couldn't squeeze in Youngster Ben's quote about comfy shorts at some point😔)

Also, despite being an ad (or perhaps exactly because it's an ad?), it was produced with such high quality.

It's not the first time, but Pokemon was able to secure the big guns when it came to the casting of voice-acting roles; there were some sexy male voices😏

On the animation side of things, maybe it's because my expectations were low (Pokemon Horizons doesn't always have the best animation), but I was impressed by how well-animated this anime is. There is so much movements in what is clearly properly choreographed fight scenes. It was a treat to watch.

Lastly, when it revealed itself to be quite a faithful adaptation of the Kanto storyline by the first episode, I knew not to expect anything different story-wise. In fact, anyone who played one of the games should know roughly what to expect in each episode based on the titles alone.

But the onion-cutting ninjas still got me in episode 2. I am no good at handling

so it hit me hard.

As mentioned earlier, Mega Evolution is where this anime materially differs from the games. But, the way it was handled was rather smooth IMO. Not only did it not take away from my enjoyment of this anime, I'd say it actually elevated it.

In a nutshell: I enjoyed this a lot. It is clearly nostalgia-bait, meant to funnel old players into the new games, and I see it working. It had only 4 episodes to work with, but it still got many things right. At least a 9 / 10 for me (recency bias means 10 / 10 for now).

I wish we can see more of such adaptations from the Pokemon franchise. It need not be an adaptation of the games; it can be an adaptation of the manga too.

(I am aware it's a pipe dream.)

Edit: just found that I am not the only one coping.